Sabres take down Senators in special night for Ruff, Bernard-Docker

The Buffalo Sabres’ resilient, full-team effort paid off with a 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday at KeyBank Center. But the victory was especially rewarding for two individuals – two men with slightly different tenures in Buffalo.

Lindy Ruff, for one, earned his 600th win behind the Sabres’ bench, becoming the second NHL head coach to accomplish the feat with one team; he joins Al Arbour, who won 740 games with the Islanders.

Ruff was unaware of the looming milestone as the Sabres overcame a pair of one-goal deficits to beat the division-rival Senators. Recognized at the final horn, however, the 65-year-old began to reflect on his 16 seasons in Buffalo.

“I’ve been fortunate,” Ruff said. “A lot of good people around me that have helped throughout the years, and coaches, unbelievable fan support here in this building. Really wasn’t aware of it, so it was kind of a surprise at the end of the game.”

He credited the organization as a whole – owners, front offices, assistant coaches, etc. – for their contributions to each of those 600 wins:

“I’ve been blessed to have an unbelievable opportunity, and the support throughout the years from different owners, different GMs, to get to this point here. … I get to stand here and talk about it, but it’s more than a one-man job.”

Whereas Ruff has totaled 1,843 games as a player and coach in Buffalo, Jacob Bernard-Docker – acquired from the Senators alongside Josh Norris on March 7 – played just his third game with the team Tuesday.

He, too, emerged from the win with plenty to smile about, having scored a key, game-tying goal with 7:01 remaining in the second period. Drafted 26th overall by Ottawa in 2018, Bernard-Docker was facing his former team for the first time.

"It felt pretty good, I'm not going to lie," said the defenseman, who suffered a high-ankle sprain in early January and, Saturday in Minnesota, saw his first game action since Dec. 28. "It feels just unreal to be on the ice, honestly. I've had a tough year prior to this, kind of just grinding and lots of skates by myself and work in the gym. It feels good to be back in games."

The goal, a wrister from the top of the right circle that beat Ottawa goaltender Anton Forsberg, was the product of gritty (and characteristic) work by forwards Tyson Kozak and Peyton Krebs. The pair battled for a rolling puck from the neutral zone all the way to the offensive end boards, where Kozak gained control and passed to an open Bernard-Docker; it also marked Kozak’s first NHL assist.

"They don't cheat the game,” Bernard-Docker said of Kozak and Krebs. “They play it the right way. It's impressive watching those guys. Young players in the league that are very defensively responsible, so it's impressive."

“Heck of an effort,” Ruff said, also praising Kozak’s late-game 5-on-6 defense. “We’ve got our game in a different place, and those guys are a big part of it.”

It was Bernard-Docker’s second goal of the season. Combined with his two-assist effort Sunday at Winnipeg, the blueliner – admittedly not an “offensive wizard” – has three points in his last two games.

"It's not my game, to be honest with you,” he said. “It's great when the offense comes, but for me it's just kind of taking pride in being hard to play against, making sure that I'm reliable. When the offense comes, it's nice, but it's not my primary focus at all."

Bernard-Docker’s offense may not be his calling card, but it’s helped the Sabres take a pair of back-and-forth contests from playoff contenders in the Jets and Senators.

“These last two games, really, they were hard games,” Ruff said. “It was a hard schedule for us. To muscle your way through the Winnipeg game, a team that’s really good in their own building, and then come back home, get a little bit of rest and be ready to go again. Faced some adversity in the first period (Tuesday), which we hadn’t been able to master or conquer. I thought our guys got through the penalties and settled down and started to take over the game. And that’s really what a good team does.”

Here’s more from the win.

1. The Senators carried play for much of the first period and led 1-0 thanks to Brady Tkachuk’s early power-play goal. JJ Peterka had tied it off a nifty feed from Jack Quinn, but the goal was challenged and overturned for offsides.

“I think there was two things early that really hurt us: the penalties hurt us, and we lost almost every faceoff,” Ruff said. “So, we were chasing the puck in that first 10, 15 minutes.”

But Buffalo began tilting the ice later in the first and recorded the final nine shots of the period. Peterka and Quinn connected again with 1:29 remaining, and this one counted; Peterka, while being knocked down, made a spinning, cross-slot pass to Quinn for a one-timer goal that evened the game 1-1.

The second period followed a similar script, with David Perron scoring on the power play to put Ottawa up 2-1. Five minutes later, moments after the Sabres had killed off another penalty, Bernard-Docker scored to tie it again.

Then, just 1:23 into the third, Tage Thompson scored what proved to be the game winner for Buffalo. Zach Benson won a puck battle behind Forsberg’s net, boxed out Fabian Zetterlund and passed to an open Thompson in front. The play highlighted a productive night for the newly formed line of Thompson, Benson and Jiri Kulich, which held a 9-5 edge in shots during its 5-on-5 ice time.

2. Ottawa outshot Buffalo 32-24 in the game, including 13-6 in the third period as the Sabres defended their 3-2 lead, but another strong showing from James Reimer helped secure the win.

Reimer has started three of Buffalo’s last four games, with his 33 saves at Winnipeg meriting another opportunity Tuesday.

“It’s a tough stretch of the season, obviously,” Bernard-Docker said. “I think Reims did a great job in both those games, keeping us in it early and giving us a chance.”

Ruff has echoed that sentiment: every team needs its backup goalie during the cluttered March schedule. The seldom-used Reimer has made the most of his opportunities, posting a .918 save percentage in these last three appearances.

3. Kulich returned to the lineup after missing Buffalo’s four-game trip with a concussion, and he tallied two shots in 17:04 of ice time. And Isak Rosen, recalled from Rochester on Tuesday morning, made his fourth NHL appearance of the season and skated 8:26.

They filled the lineup spots of forwards Sam Lafferty (groin) and Jordan Greenway (lower body); both are day to day with their injuries, Ruff said at the morning skate.

4. Dylan Cozens, traded with Dennis Gilbert to Ottawa in the Bernard-Docker and Norris deal, returned to Buffalo and faced his former team. Cozens notched an assist on Tkachuk’s early goal, while Gilbert wasn’t in the Senators’ lineup. The Sabres honored both players with a video during a first-period timeout.

“It's a little emotional, for sure,” Cozens said. “Obviously, I loved my time here. A lot of great memories here. It's where I started my NHL career. I was very proud to be Buffalo Sabre. Obviously didn't work out, but I'll always look back on my time here as a great time, where I made lots of long-lasting friendships."

Up next

The Sabres host the Pittsburgh Penguins on Thursday night. Tickets are available here.

Coverage on MSG begins at 6:30 p.m. with puck drop scheduled for 7.